BuRnOuT

I lost a huge amount of weight throughout this year. no manboobs to be reported at all...then again I never had them before the operation...did that help?:001_tongue:

With all the success that the vsg operation promised and delivered to you and I...I was contemplating the idea of helping others. Here's what happens 3 or 4 days every week in my life: Every time I'm having a break from work, me and a couple of guys go downstairs from the office building to hang out for a while. And there, you see all sorts of people (it's a very busy building). And like you'd expect, some faces become familiar..in fact very familiar that you start noticing a routine (kind of like the movie Disturbia ) Now, in this story...there are two guys I do not know but always see and they both are very heavy and need help. One of them doesnt seem to be doing anything about it but certainly gives me flashbacks of yours truely...and the other one always comes with a gym bag (theres a huge gym in the building), but he always seems reluctant to enter..and from what I've witnessed, he ALWAYS parks his car, walks slowly to the stairs facing the entrance..has a cigarette or two with soda..goes inside the building for 10 min and comes out with a sandwich...and then leaves!! all this with the gym bag on his shoulder (it has the gym's name on it). so here I am back to what I was thinking off. Shouldn't i intervene? Shouldnt I go to the first guy and tell him, you're still young and there is a way? what about the other guy..he's definitely trying to do the right thing..but we all know how hard it is for him..we've been there I'm sure all of us. Shouldnt he be facing the facts? he is way past the gym and he obviously not motivated to lose the weight that way. He must be around 400 pounds. But here's the truth. I wouldnt dare say anything to them although i feel i should. Would you??

@loser, I agree with the donations idea you mentioned..probably the best way to help out people with no means at all. its a great idea. @wingrider... from what u've described, im thinking the lady did take the bait but shes probably to embaressed to share with you. u've done well to highlight it...and now its up to her i think. @tiffykins, you probably have the best approach...it involves getting personal with the case on hand..getting close and friendly. investing enough time into it. but to tell u the truth, im not the social gym type...i prefer my biking (actual down the block) and my building's gym. so wish i could help the gym guy that way. @mlkpas I totaly agree..nothing more shocking than to hear the worst about u from a stranger...then again, some people really do live in denial and what might seem like harsh words today, could be what started a chain reaction that lead to them gaining their health back. this is specifically why this issue confuses me: its weird how being indifferent to strangers is considered the socially correct behaviour, but being involved is not despite the fact that it might actually help someone DO SOMETHING even if what you said momentarily hurts them. @deedee yes u said it "if u had the opportunity to socialize" but thats the missing link unfortunately. I just wish talking about weight was less taboo than it is now (especially if u mean well which we do)... I remember in the documentary "Supersize me" someone was talking about how its not acceptable to talk about weight to a stranger but its ok to shun a smoker..although they are both deadly paths. he thought it was hypocritical, and i kind of agree. @carolyn, actually u never know..u might have started a spark...have u seen this lady eversince? dont be hard on urself, u meant well and there is no way u could have made her life worse cos what u said was part of the solution not the problem i believe....fat is the problem. and for when u said "we are messengers in our actions"...i see ur point totally, but dont u think these guys are looking at me as a healthy person who doesnt know what they are going through when in reality i am probably the most living example to them of what they can achieve health wise? but they will never know if i stay quiet will they:001_unsure: i dunno..i might just go on filming a documentary about this hehe. "the michael moore of fat taboos" ...which reminds me, michael moore would probably take an advice about weight well I think.

Thought its time to invade some privacy, so i'm opening bearded's room door...:thumbup: Fresh male here, saying hello to all. Wish there was a simple "introduce urself"section. I find "tell ur story"too dramatic hehe...no story to tell, just hoping I did the right choice.

edamame M'am....put it down slowly..hands up and step away from the green

Hi "youknowit"...hope ur doing well. mushies to solids? well i dont know about others, but to me it was easy. u wont believe how little ur eating but the good thing is that ur full and surprisingly ur eyes and brain wont play tricks on u...u will just feel fulfilled even if after few bites. and just before i forget, tracey..i dont mind that potpurri but those celery and carrot sticks are going right in the bin..how dare u!

Hi Admins and everyone, I think the album feature should be organized differently in my opinion. The search button in there produces no results when you type in a name of a member. it seems to be searching for the album title only which could be literally anything...and not searching for the owner or the uploader of it. I find this a bit strange. You can test it..last album is "deedee". try typing it, it produces nothing. Maybe its just me, I'll add a Poll to this thread. What do you guys think?

Hi again, please more people cast ur votes on this poll. hopefully we'll get a reaction from the admins:001_tt2:

alright ... so I was contemplating today about when I was roaming all over the net 3 months ago, searching for answers about VSG...and as a male, it was really hard to find a story I could relate to.... as much as I love the ladies (and of course all the VSG ladies in here :crying:) but it was hard to relate to most of their feelings and emotions. Maybe it's just me, but we are afterall aliens to Venus...so I thought this little thread might help males searching for answers about vsg. The decision wasn't done in haste, but it also didn't take much time to get me convinced of vsg. As many many people would tell you, I also am one of the people who went in to do the band...but came out from the surgeon's clinic with printed papers and a whole lot of thinking to do about VSG instead! (surfing the net naturally followed). getting down to business...I had zero fear or stress right from the time I decided to go on with it, till the time I was on the operation table dosing off to sleep. I remember I was chatting with the nurse as she shaved my stomache and we were laughing about it! as for the actual feelings relating to incisions and the recovery, I will intentionally skip..cos that applies to most vsgiers regardless. all i can say about that whole month post op...is that as soon as you're done with liquids and start the solid diet..you start feeling good..not normal mind you..you start feeling GOOD! now away from all that...this is what I'm going through now: Nothing has become a burden anymore. Buying and wearing clothes that look "good"..(yep thats the word of the day)...driving my car (which is that sexy beast in my avatar up there), going to work, helping others and taking care of myself in all aspects. Do you know the guy that is overweight, and just lets his beard out cos there's no point in shaving? Well that changed. How about the guy that neglects friends and passes on outings? no more of that..I find myself WANTING to do fun stuff...laziness is departing gradually from my life. obviously work does drain me during the week..but its not that same " oh man, I just wanna kick back and do nothing" attitude. ...and the guy that boasts about driving recklessly and about how much healthy food is "gay"? that will change. I still do like the thought of driving at full speed..and I still love the idea of junkfood...but I just dont do it anymore. I'll leave the analysis to the ladies reading this:001_rolleyes: so there u go...many more things to say but I wasn't expecting to ramble on that much..go figure:001_tongue: What's weird is that I'm around 3+ months post-op and I already went through all of this..and it feels Good! Can't wait till I get to my ideal weight...cant weight to feel Great!:lol0:

hmm noob question here....i am not taking any multivitamins...how important r they and dont we get enough of vitamins through the daily meals?

I am very happy for you man..best of luck. dunno if u've visited leb before but one thing for surem, u chose to rest at the right place..it will be beyond marvelous at this time of year! lucky u:001_rolleyes: but question: how long after surgery r u planning to travel by car? i really reaaaally think u should stay in syria for at least 5 days. the incisions might be too much to tolerate during the 4-6 hours drive. perhaps u should check with the surgeon. on another note, this will pass like a breeze so dont worry too much...u might get a moment or two of " damn what am i doing to myself "...if u do, just confirm to urself that it is absolutely the right way back on track..best of luck again!

Hi again, Unfortunately most mid-east countries do not officially register obesity issues as diseases. as for " wizarit il-sa77a", I find that shocking that they took care of a part of the payment, ur friend must have had a special case or special contacts (cough:001_tongue:). btw, I'm pure Lebanese...but I dont live in beirut...and I am paying this myself as well...in easy installments through my bank. I just popped there, visited my friends..did the operation and came back :001_wub: I think u could just do it in canada or something if ur gonna save up 5000$ or so..thats a lot of money my friend! best of luck khayeh...if u need anything let me know.

Hi Lebyvr, I'm lebanese myself...answering ur question, I recommend Dr. safadi from AUH a.k.a AUBMC in Beirut...he was my surgeon and did a proper job. $10,000 in total. aubmc@aub.edu.lb good luck

You see the word "bra" ............and all these flashes of images hit you, as your hand almost involuntarily mind you...slides the mouse to open that "full of promises" thread... too bad that image of the bra-man has to be stored forever and ever in my memory vault now Jane-J, J'accuse!

Hey MrNicksr...welcome to the board! I can tell ur excited about what might just be the best decision u did in ur life...getting ur life back on track. I wish u the best of luck..keep us posted will ya:thumbup1: hey sweetie333...just remember...any negative feelings u go through now will vanish 90% when ur back on solid diet. just hang in there, play by the rules and keep educating ur mind about the good habits u'll start when the weight loss really kicks in...best of luck dear. chancie...its great to hear from u again. i know i've been away for quite some time..i guess it was part of adjusting hehe..i hope i can stay around more this time...46 pounds to go, thats fantastic:biggrin0:...keep it at full speed:thumbup:

Hi Chancie..hope ur doing well:001_smile: I would have to agree with alegna on the meal thing. especially carbs, they tend to make me sleepy too... I would suggest some sort of grilled Protein that u'll nibble on throughout the night? grilled fish or prawns perhaps...

hmmm strange.....I just saw the posts from PennyS and Paul :S ...sorry guys. I did dissapear for quite some time after posting this thread. Penny I hope that went well...how r u feeling 3 months post op? same goes to u Paul?..ur date is close to mine. guys dont forget to add tickers to ur profile :confused1:

@tiffykins Thank you so much ... by the way u have one the cutest names on the board:wink1: and congrats on ur progress too..if u dont mind me saying, ur looking smokin' hot my lady:cool0: @MMendez74 Man I'm sure we have a lot in common..other than the fact that we're both men, we also seem to have almost the same goal weight and we're from the same age group...I'm 30 btw. oh ya, I'm jealous of ur ticker..its so cool man! @Susan first of all...you must be an amazing person to dedicate some considerable time everyday to admin this board along with the others. I hope you keep at it... on another note..there's no words that would justify how sexy that photo of urs is! and no, you can be certain that's no lip service:001_tongue: @Haley hehe it's a one time thing..no more great posts coming I'm guessing :confused1: and hey where's ur ticker babe? or is it research phase? @VegasAngel Last thing I was looking at before posting that thread was ur updated album. Fantastic work...black dress wow:001_tt1: . Mr. beardedItalian is loving this I'm sure!:thumbup:

Hey thanks for the clarificatiion mac. I'm fairly new here, u don't know me but i've read lots of what u have to say in many of the forum threads. hats off to u my lady u've done a great job to urself and others. by the way, i do remember getting to a profile of urs were u had gathered all testimonials of people 2 or 3 years post op. couldnt find it again, can u guide me please with a link, i wanna bookmark it this time. i must say, it would be strange to adjust to the fact that a 6 feet tall guy wont be able to finish a 6'' coldcut sub.:huh0: i wonder how creative the comments of people i know will go and for how long.

I like the idea dange and was thinking of it myself. i am really interested in knowing what my plate could look like once the situation down there is stable :lol0: I also share dange's confusion with oz measurments as we use grams but i guess a quick google look up will clear that up:001_rolleyes: and just a question. is it ever possible to say... have a half foot of subway sandwich or a regular sized burger a year post-op or am i way off? sorry if i sound like a noob, but that's what i am:001_tt2:

@chancie Hi chancie and thanks for the welcome. seems like ur approaching ur goal when did u get sleeved? 136 lb that's amazing:thumbup: keep it up! @ange lol@ ticker in Kg hehehe...i always get a 5 seconds mind freeze trying to calculate them pounds :thumbup: Hope ur doing great and pleased to meet ya. and sure, I will close the door, as long as u know the key is under the door mat:thumbup1:

Hi susan, bearded m8 and angel, his better half :ohmy: very happy to meet u all, I wasnt expecting such a nice welcome. I will surely update u on how things go. By the way, I live far away...the other side of this planet, but was drawn to this place cos I've been reading a lot of what everyone had to say...including the VSG section on the lapband forum. Your stories played a major role in the decision to get sleeved. God bless

Hi ladies and thanks for the welcome. Yes I got sleeved on the 17th of july. As you have probably figured, I'm still in the full liquids stage. I'm still not pain free, but I do sense it gets a little better everyday. Going back to work in less than a week and REALLY hoping these cramps and aches will vanish soon enough.